Iowa State

Minnesota will play Oklahoma State in a neutral-site nonconference game in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, this season. The Gophers announced Friday they’ll face the Cowboys on Saturday, Dec. 12, at the 3,250-seat Sanford Pentagon arena.

The Mayo Clinic says Iowa State coach Fred Hoiberg is expected to be released on Thursday, less than a week after open-heart surgery. Hoiberg had surgery at the clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, on Friday to replace his aortic valve, a procedure he put off twice during the season.

Minnesota didn’t make it to the “big dance” this year, but three of the four Division 1 schools from Iowa did: Iowa, Iowa State and Northern Iowa. Our neighbor to the south has a little over half the population of Minnesota, but four times the number of D-1 schools.

Every year in the NCAA Tournament, we see great games, finishes, a few upsets and some dramatic moments. But which teams should we keep an eye on that likely survive the first weekend? Who will get to the Final Four, and which smaller school has the best chance to pull off an upset? Here are 10 teams to keep an eye on as we head to Selection Sunday.

In this week’s That Thing You Missed watch the Twins pull an epic March Madness prank on Mike Pelfrey, Iowa State coach Fred Hoiberg’s lack of dancing prowess go viral and what just might be the worst answer to a sports question ever.

Wilt had some unbelievable games here. Ali and Frazier fought here. The players who will take the court at Madison Square Garden this weekend, though, don’t remember any of that. And yet they still regard the Garden as the World’s Most Famous Arena.

His name is Fred Hoiberg and we got to know him as a member of the Timberwolves. Now, he’s leading Iowa State to the Sweet-16 in his home town of Ames, Iowa. But could he one day be called to the Timberwolves as its next head coach?

Royce White has had one interesting basketball journey. It starts with a storied year at Iowa State, a first round pick who never played in his rookie season. White’s back home for a break, as he’s just been traded from Houston to Philadelphia.

Fans poured into the streets, rejoiced in dorms, bars and living rooms, and at one point became so raucous that riot police were briefly called in as the city held all-night parties to celebrate the Cardinals’ first NCAA title in a generation.

Aaron Craft hit a 3-pointer with a half-second left, and Ohio State escaped Dayton — a place of heartaches — as the lone high seed left in the NCAA tournament’s wild West Regional, beating Iowa State 78-75 on Sunday.

Former Minnesota Vikings linebacker Matt Blair will be inducted into the Vikings Ring of Honor. Blair was an Iowa State grad who was a second round draft pick in 1974. He started in 130 games for the Vikings, and holds the team record for blocked kicks (20), and the linebacker record for sacks and interceptions. Blair also still ranks second in team history with 1,452 career tackles.

The Vikings second first round pick, Harrison Smith out of Notre Dame, has quite a connection to his childhood team in Tennessee. Former Viking Tim Irwin was Smith’s childhood coach, and currently coaches Smith’s younger brother.